Forquer, George

Born: 1794-XX-XX Uniontown, Pennsylvania

Died: 1838-09-12 New Design, Illinois

Flourished: Springfield, Illinois

Forquer moved from Pennsylvania with his mother to St. Louis, Missouri in 1803 and then to New Design, Illinois in 1804. Forquer represented Monroe County in the Illinois House of Representatives, from 1824 until his resignation in 1825 after he earned appointment from Governor Edward Coles to serve as secretary of state. Forquer resigned his position at the end of 1828 and moved to Springfield to become attorney general for Illinois, serving in that position from 1829 until his resignation in 1832. Forquer represented Sangamon County in the Illinois Senate, from 1832 until his resignation in 1835. Forquer held other positions in Springfield including attorney and register of the General Land Office. While working as an attorney, Forquer worked both with and against Abraham Lincoln in court rooms across the state. He was a leader for the Jacksonian Democratic party in Illinois.

John Clayton, comp., The Illinois Fact Book and Historical Almanac, 1673-1968 (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1970), 97, 199, 202, 203; History of Sangamon County, Illinois (Chicago: Inter-State, 1881), 80, 83, 86, 283; For Forquer's cases involving Lincoln, search "Forquer, George," Martha L. Benner and Cullom Davis et al., eds., The Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln: Complete Documentary Edition, 2d edition (Springfield: Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, 2009), http://www.lawpracticeofabrahamlincoln.org.